Editing, Editing, and Some More Editing

I've been chipping away at Book 4 the last few days. I am now on page 141 of what is now 299 pages. There's not much to report on that front. Editing is a slow and tedious job. This book seems to have a lot more to edit than the other ones did. I think that stems from the fact that I tweaked with the intended plot when I got to the end and now things have to be adjusted to fit the result.

That only means more work!

 

My To-Edit List

I have a hefty sized list (pictured) that I have to pay attention to as I edit. Most of the parts on this list need to be added in while I write so it's taking some discipline to remember to check the list every couple chapters.

There's also an assortment of comments I'm leaving in the book itself to remind me to check back on it later. It could range from something that doesn't make sense at the moment (I need to check back at the end to make sure I explained it later) to events that need to be brought up later or got heavily editing and will affect the story later.

 

I seriously have no idea what's causing that portal to appear...Idea for Book 5 maybe?

I realized while reading today that the story really changes in tone by the time the ending comes around. This is supposed to happen with every story. Your character is supposed to change as the story progresses. The MC starts out with a flaw and that flaw has to be addressed and resolved by the end of the story.

I wrote this story with a definite flaw for Roan in mind but tried to avoid working too hard on showing its development as the story progressed. That really just makes it seem too forced to readers. Instead, I wrote by instinct and allowed the characters to emphasize his flaw and show me how it was resolved by the end. I've said it time and time again but characters really do come 'alive' in their behavior and tendencies. They can form a story and plot just as creatively as the writer can. Thanks to this, the end result was pretty impressive, at least from what I've read so far. I can clearly see a difference between the characters at the beginning and the characters at the end, especially Roan even though all the characters had their own flaw addressed.

More on that later. I need to try wrapping up this chapter before bed.

As my college english professor always said, you never fully finish editing a paper and when you think you have go over it again!